Heresy Amongst the Stars
by Eldest Tempest
Summary: When an Imperial cruiser loses itself in the Warp, it can lead to all sorts of insane situations. What happens when the Imperial cruiser is cast out by the Warp, and into an entirely different universe, steeped in heresy and filled with xenos? You just might find out.
1. Chapter 1

It is the 41st Millennium and the Imperium of Mankind is at war.

Such was typified as two cruisers battled in the cold vacuum of space, exchanging fire with their weapon batteries.

Captain Trenske looked on as his vessel, the _Righteous Flame_, did battle with her counterpart, a blasphemous Chaos vessel. The _Righteous Flame_, previously part of a Battlefleet in the Segmentum Obscurus, had been separated from the rest of her fleet, due to the actions of the Space Marine Chapter, the Iron Knights, who had commandeered the vessel "in the name of the Emperor" for a raid they had planned against a Chaos-tainted world. The raid had, for the most part, been a success, though they had drawn the ire of the Chaos fleet, resulting in a lengthy chase that ended with the current battle. Trenske shook his head as he glanced at the heretical vessel, inscribed with all sorts of foul carvings. The Iron Knights were bold indeed, having adopted several traits from their Primarch, Rogal Dorn. As such, some parts of the Codex Astartes were forgotten, when it came to the annihilation of mankind's enemies, facts that the Inquisition were keen on pointing out. Some may have called it open heresy against the Imperium, for their negligence to rules put forth about Astartes being forbidden from possessing formidable enough craft that they could assault the Imperium, company divisions, and numberings. The Iron Knights made up for these accusations with their sheer number of victories against the enemies of mankind, utilizing their unusually large supply of Terminators and vehicles in full-scale assaults.

Trenske pulled his thoughts back together, having once again lost himself in remembrance. The two vessels were still pounding each other with their weaponry, visible damage apparent on the enemy ship.

"Sir, the enemy vessel is moving away from us. It appears to be making a Warp jump."

Trenske cursed under his breath as his gaze flitted to the ship once more. Indeed, it was veering away from the _Righteous Flame_, in a hasty attempt at retreat.

"Should we pursue?"

Trenske was about to give the order to hunt it down, but he was interrupted by a voice altered by speaking through a helmet. "Full speed ahead. Hunt the heretics without mercy."

Standing at seven feet in height, towering over everyone on the bridge, Brother-Captain Aedrus observed the Chaos vessel from behind the lenses of his helmet, just one piece of the sturdy Power Armour he was clad in. A bolter pistol was clipped to it, as well as his Power Sword.

Trenske nodded to his men on the bridge, as the engines roared to life; no doubt the tech-priests were consulting with the machine-spirits. Aedrus clanked over to stand beside him, as Trenske clenched his jaw as he watched the _Righteous Flame_ move inexorably towards the vessel.

And then the Warp Portal appeared.

Several members on the bridge made surprised exclamations as the Chaos ship surged forward. Aedrus pounded his fist on a nearby console, in fury. "Push the engines to their limits, and power on the Nova Cannon."

The _Righteous Flame_'s ace card, the Nova Cannon, was mounted on the prow of the vessel, and had the capability to cripple a battleship with ease. The only problem was its inaccuracy. Prayers to the Emperor were made as no doubt, the crew was loading the massive warhead into the cannon. Aedrus continued to stare at the vessel as it made headway into the vortex. When confirmation had been given on the Vox that the proper blessings were made and that it had been loaded, Aedrus bellowed out his command.

"_Fire_!" he exclaimed as a light tremor passed through the vessel, as the warhead was launched from its shelter, on a collision course for the Chaos vessel.

Instead, it hit the portal, and everything went to chaos.

The vortex had, through the mysterious workings of the Warp, adopted the properties of a miniature vacuum, and had begun to pull anything nearby into it. The Chaos vessel was gone in a flash, and soon the _Righteous Flame_ followed it.

* * *

The first thing Ferias noticed when he awakened, was that something was immediately wrong. Cautiously, he reached out with his psychic abilities and recoiled instantly, upon detecting what lay outside the ship. They were drifting through the Warp, completely unprotected. Creeping out of his quarters, he spotted Daerid looking aghast. Upon noticing Ferias, however, he straightened his posture and gave a curt nod, Power Claws glinting even in the dimly lit hallway. "Brother Ferias," he greeted curtly.

"Brother Daerid," Ferias responded. "What is the situation?"

"We were pursuing a Chaos vessel, when the Warp, beyond comprehension as it is, locked us inside," Daerid reported, as he gave a slight agitated twitch. "Daemons could swarm us at any moment. Our Brother-Captain wants you on the bridge."

"Very well, then I shall oblige him," Ferias answered as he made his way towards the part of the ship.

The blast door slid open as Ferias walked through it, onto the bridge. The kaleidoscope of colours that was the Warp was in clear view at every possible and impossible angle.

"Brother Ferias," Aedrus called out, his back to him, as he too gazed at the pandemonium of the Warp.

"Brother-Captain," Ferias acknowledged as he placed his fist over the Aquila in a salute. "You said you had need of me?"

"Indeed. We are effectively stranded here and if we wait any longer, we'll be a daemon feasting ground. I need you to aid the Navigators in getting the _Righteous Flame_ out of the Warp."

"I should be able to do that," Ferias replied as he closed his eyes in concentration, channeling his psychic might into the task. The effort soon proved to be draining, due to the willpower required to stave off the influence of Chaos. There was a tremor, and the distant sound of the engines at work.

"The machine spirits appear to be cooperative again," Daerid commented as he entered the bridge.

Ferias raised one hand towards him, requesting silence, as he could begin feeling the vessel move. Sweat beaded his brow in sheer concentration, as the _Righteous Flame_ gave a groan, as they began to pick up speed. In an instant, the strangeness that was the Warp seemed to have vanished, and Ferias slowly opened his eyes. The insanity of the Warp had indeed receded, and the _Righteous Flame_ had returned to real-space. Ferias then promptly turned about and retched onto the bridge.

"By the Emperor, Ferias," Daerid swore as he could not help but laugh. "You could have given a little warning."

"My apologies, brother," Ferias stated as he wiped the remaining phlegm from his mouth. "The effort took a marginal part of my energy."

"Fine, fine," Daerid chuckled as his gaze flicked to outside the vessel. "Now, where in the Imperium do you suppose we are?"

Ferias glanced at Aedrus and followed his gaze, noticing the planet that stood out in front of him. He could see primarily green and blue colours on it, with some grey to go along with it. "I suspect it is at least a habitable planet. Though, I am unsure as to where we might be."

Aedrus clenched his fist in front of his Aquila then unclenched it, as he turned to face his battle-brothers. "Get Erasmus to power on the Thunderhawk. We're going to take a look around."

"As you say, Brother-Captain," Daerid acknowledged as he turned to exit the bridge.

Ferias watched him depart, then went back to watching the strange planet. "Captain, if we are not in the Imperium, then where are we?"

Aedrus too had been watching the planet, staying silent for some time before replying, "We shall just have to wait and see, brother."


	2. Chapter 2

**Wow, three reviews already! I was not expecting this and I appreciate the support!**

**mr I hate znt nobles kill em - I'm aware aliens in Star Wars are regarded as equal citizens (In the Republic at least.), but the summary was written from a 40K perspective, so I had to use words such as "heresy" and "xenos". I apologize for the confusion.**

* * *

Xerxes was beneath the Thunderhawk when Daerid appeared, requesting the Thunderhawk for operation.

The Techmarine frowned as he finished his modifications, and placing the plate back onto its original position, thanking the machine spirit for its cooperation. He stood up from his work, servo arms whirring as he did so, turning to face Daerid. "Are we in a hostile system?" he questioned.

"No, Brother Marine. At least, as far as I know. The Captain wants it for reconnaissance. We appear to have come across an unknown system, by Imperium standards."

"Most curious," Xerxes muttered, his servo-arms swaying about as he considered this. "I wasn't entirely aware we had left the battle."

"Involved in your work?"

"The machine-spirit must be tended with utmost care. They are important in every regard," Xerxes stated. His battle-brothers never seemed to truly understand the importance of the machine spirit as he did. They had not been a part of the Mechanicus as he had, communed with the machine-spirits, or learned of the Omnissiah.

"I meant no offense, brother," Daerid held both of his hands up in an innocent gesture, which was hard to do with his Power Claws. "Where may I find Erasmus?"

"Brother Erasmus is in the cockpit, as per usual 94.392% of the time."

"I probably should have guessed," Daerid shook his head as he made his way towards the cockpit. He stopped suddenly and turned about, glancing at Xerxes. "Wait, you actually count and do math about how long Erasmus lurks in the cockpit?"

"That is correct," Xerxes replied. "My mind is hard-wired for specific calculation, after all. Besides, it's not like there's much else to spend my time doing."

Daerid simply shook his head in exasperation once more as he turned away. Xerxes' auditory senses picked up the sound of hissing steam as the forward ramp descended onto the floor.

"Brother!" exclaimed a voice that could only be Erasmus. Despite his name, which Imperial historians had found belonged to several famous figures with a serious demeanor, Erasmus was the exact opposite. He took his duties seriously enough, but compared to the Astartes, he was very optimistic and light-hearted. He cherished his Thunderhawk above all other material things, except the Emperor.

"…Erasmus," Daerid coolly replied. There was no animosity between the two of them, but Xerxes was aware that his battle-brothers thought Erasmus would eventually get himself killed. "Brother-Captain Aedrus needs the Thunderhawk operational for a scouting mission."

"You're in luck, brother. The Thunderhawk is in peak condition. You can get the rest of our battle-brothers here while I power it on."

At Erasmus' words, Xerxes wisely shuffled away from the engines. When Erasmus got behind the controls of any vehicle, it was _never_ a good idea to stand behind it. He heard the sound of the front ramp closing, and Xerxes sighed in relief.

* * *

"Welcome to Air Erasmus, take a load off while we prepare for takeoff," Erasmus' voice boomed over the Vox as the various Astartes took their seats. Talius promptly planted his head into his palm, shaking it, as he despaired of his fellow Astartes' humor. He sometimes wondered if he was the only one who tried to take things seriously. His better judgment, however, informed him that the rest of the squad had plenty of sanity, and Erasmus was just lightening the mood. The physical tremors of the engines humming to life were felt, as the Thunderhawk lifted from the ground and, from Talius' guess, exited the _Righteous Flame_ into the emptiness of space.

Aedrus glanced at each of his fellow Astartes as he began to speak. "Brothers, as I'm sure you all know, we have been deposited into an unknown system. We have no idea what we are up against. Heretics, Eldar, Orks, it makes no matter. If we manage to defeat any hostiles or manage to withdraw, then we will have learned something. If not, then we die as the sons of the Emperor. Be wary, brothers. The Emperor prot-"

Aedrus was rudely interrupted as a tremor wracked through the ship. "What in the Emperor?" Daerid exclaimed as they were jostled about in their seats.

Erasmus' voice came on through the Vox. "We're being _shot_ at. These ships just appeared out of nowhere and began to shoot at us! I'm trying evasive maneuvers."

Talius heard the distant sounds of gunfire that could only be the heavy bolters mounted on the Thunderhawk, pelting away at whatever foe dared get in the crossfire.

"By the Emperor, I've never seen ships like this. Sleek in design, firing some sort of repeating lance weaponry. Their turrets aren't even at port or starboard, they seem to be dotted everywhere, most pointing at the front, but some on the ships, that seem to rotate after us."

Talius could hear Xerxes mutter something in binary, though not knowing the language; he could not understand his brother.

"Can you land us on the planet, brother?" Aedrus asked.

"The planet? If I can get past this blockade, I'm assuming it's a blockade at least, yes. I'm surprised we did not see this from the _Righteous Flame_."

"The Warp works in mysterious ways," Ferias murmured, whilst Daerid brought up the possibility of stealth technology.

"Do your best, brother." Aedrus commanded, as more sounds of conflict echoed in the din of the Thunderhawk.

"I'll try. I make no guarant- _God Emperor_!" Erasmus swore over the Vox as the Thunderhawk twisted in a complete 360 degree turn, whilst still weaving towards the planet. "Sorry about that. It's such a mess here I need every part of my concentration. Lots of attack craft, and cruisers, by the look of it. Some escorts, maybe even a capital ship or two."

"Are we in the middle of a warzone?" Aedrus questioned. "Is it the Eldar and the Dark Eldar?"

"Even xenos like the Eldar don't have automatic lances. And we've seen their shuriken weaponry at work." Erasmus informed over the Vox, as the Thunderhawk made more twists and turns. Eventually, after some time, and several curses from Erasmus over the Vox, the ride became less hectic as Erasmus announced their success at breaking through the blockade or battle. "Thank you for flying with Air Erasmus. We hope you enjoyed your flight, and will tip the pilot with several drinks."

The Astartes of the Iron Knights made a cacophony of laughter at the comment.

* * *

**Hehe, I think I'll like writing Erasmus' character. He's quite amusing to work with, as is Daerid. All the Astartes, really, have been fun to write so far. The Emperor protects, brothers, and may the Force be with you!**


	3. Chapter 3

**More reviews! Woo!**

**Jouaint - Actually, this is set in The Old Republic. The Force and the Warp are certainly interesting topics to compare and contrast about. I'm not sure whether they'll be seperate things, or one massive philosophical force to draw upon.**

**bazagal - Compared to a lasgun? Firepower-wise, I'd say they're equal. Overall, though, I think a blaster wins, as it can fire more often than a lasgun. Now a blaster versus a bolter may be a different story, considering bolters fire ****_diamond tipped ammo that explodes_****. There'll be frequent comparisons on my part, and I apologize if they seem incorrect. I shall try my best to be fair and sensical!**

* * *

There was something odd about the vessel, Dav Sheren noted as he peered out of the observation window. The ship was massive, and it looked more like a floating city than a starship. Yet here it was, sitting silently at the edge of the battle. It had not opened fire on any of the other vessels, and had not even been attacked so far, likely because the captains of the other vessels had no desire to engage with another vessel. Still, the mere presence of it was disconcerting. It was not of Republic design, but it could have been an Empire ship, for all they knew. Typical of the Sith to watch and wait at the fringe of an ongoing conflict, then home in on survivors. One of the many communicators on the ship, he turned about to the captain of the vessel and his superior officer. He had the insignia of the Galactic Republic emblazoned on his uniform, as he stared quietly at the raging conflict, occasionally giving the necessary order. "Sir, that unidentified ship is still hanging about at the edge of the battle. Should I make contact with them? To check if they aren't the enemy?"

The captain frowned as he glanced at Dav, tearing his gaze away from the titanic conflict. "Very well. Contact them."

Dav nodded as he swiveled back the console, placing the subspace transceiver on his head, attempting to hail the ship. "Unidentified vessel, this is the Galactic Republic, requesting to know why you are here. Over."

* * *

Trenske was watching the battle with mild interest when one of the crew told them they had received a transmission. "Patch them through."

The resulting message was completely incomprehensible to Trenske and the _Righteous Flame_'s crew tasked with monitoring the Vox. It would appear that whatever these people were, they lacked Astropaths. "Send them a message that isn't in the tongue of xenos. I cannot understand a word of it."

"Of course, captain," One of the crewmembers responded as he began to send the message. Trenske turned about and continued to observe the battle.

* * *

"Sir, whatever language they're speaking, I can't understand any of it. They may be speaking Huttese, for all I know." Dav frowned as he stated this. The reply had not been in galactic Basic, more rough and guttural, though with some sense of eloquence. A strange language, indeed.

The captain sighed, dismissively waving a hand. "Never mind, it's not important. If it really means a lot, though, get a translator droid to decipher the message. I can't be bothered with his right now."

Dav meekly nodded, leaving the bridge to find a translator droid, the unknown words still gnawing at him.

* * *

"Weapons at ready, brothers. Erasmus says we will be making landfall soon."

Daerid flexed his Power Claws in anticipation at his Brother-Captain's command. Perhaps they could find some sort of information that could tell them where they were. Better yet, a method back to the Imperium. Daerid was now absolutely certain they were no longer in Imperium space. There had been unrecognizable spacecraft, judging by Erasmus' words. Perhaps they could have been new ships of one of the Imperium's many enemies. Yet, even so, no xenos or heretic could have procured the technology for the weaponry described by Erasmus. It was simply beyond any of their capabilities. Daerid paused as he considered the possibility of the Tau. Their rail guns were awfully similar to repeating lance weaponry. But why would Tau fire on _each other_?

"Well, I certainly can't say I've ever seen a place like this. We've passed a few scarred pieces of earth and I've seen a couple smoldering wreckages as well. Seems like the battle's not just being fought up in space." Erasmus had been giving them regular tidbits of information, most of which intrigued Aedrus, Ferias, or Xerxes, sometimes all three. Daerid, on the other hand, could care less about what planet they were on, or what was occurring. The Imperium was where the Iron Knights were needed, and by the Emperor, they would get back there.

"Hold on, I think I see an active vehicle. Strange way of moving, it appears to be… walking on legs? It's in a box-like shape as well. I think I'll dive down for a closer l- Ah, God-Emperor, never mind." Erasmus muttered as the Thunderhawk remained in its position with the clouds.

"What happened, Brother Erasmus?" Aedrus inquired. Daerid could tell that Aedrus was intrigued in almost anything mentioned about the planet.

"Some sort of artillery must have knocked it out. I saw a streak of some sort, and then it exploded. I'll be landing us soon."

"Very well, brother. We shall wait until that occurs," Aedrus stated as he leaned against the seat he was on.

Several minutes passed by, before Daerid felt the familiar thud of landing gear."We've landed; I'll be opening up the front ramp shortly." Erasmus informed them as the Astartes began to leave their seats, checking their various weaponry a second time.

"Right, let's see if the inhabitants are non-hostile. If they start to fire at us, respond in kind. If not, keep your weapons ready, but _do not_ wield them in a threatening manner." Aedrus ordered.

"Would've thought it'd be easy to guess if they were hostile or not after blasting at the Thunderhawk," Daerid heard Talius mutter under his breath.

A hissing noise echoed throughout the Thunderhawk, as steam rushed forth, the front ramp beginning to lower itself. When it had done so, Aedrus gave the signal, and the Astartes stormed out of the Thunderhawk, weapons at ready. "Anything?" Aedrus asked.

"Clear," Ferias responded.

"Clear," Talius answered.

"Clear on my end," Erstan, their Apothecary, replied.

"All clear," Ceres affirmed.

"I do not sense anything," Xerxes asserted.

"Nothing on my sights," Daerid stated last. "There's a village up ahead, though I think we all could see that. Shall we take a look inside, Brother-Captain?"

"That would be a wise place to begin our search, Brother Daerid. Move out, weapons at ready. Erasmus, stay with the Thunderhawk."

"I've no intent of leaving it, Brother-Captain," Erasmus replied over the Vox.

The group of Astartes began to make their way towards the village, glancing from side to side as they made their way inside. Ferias halted as Daerid walked right into him. "By the Emperor, Ferias, what is it?"

"We are not alone, Brother Daerid. I sense life," Ferias muttered as he cast his gaze about.

"Where?" Talius hefted his heavy bolter, looking around warily.

An explosion detonated not a few feet away from the Astartes, tearing up the material of the path they were on and sending it scattering about. "_There!_" Ferias responded as the Astartes opened fire on the source.

Blaster fire erupted about them as Daerid switched on his Power Claws, pure energy coursing through them as he charged at a group of them. Ammo glanced off of his Power Armour, though he ignored it, as he continued to rush at them. With a swipe of a claw, he cut a deep scratch onto someone's face, resulting in a satisfying scream of pain. Pivoting about, he thrust the points of his claws deep into the throat of another, the sticky red substance of blood beginning to coat them. Daerid ripped the claws out, as he continued the dance of death, cutting down any that came near him.

Talius' heavy bolter was cutting through the ranks at an enormous rate, as Ferias utilized his psychic might whenever he could. Ceres and Erstan used their bolters, mowing down soldiers at an efficient rate. Brother-Captain Aedrus himself stood amongst his Astartes, firing his bolt pistol.

It was over almost as soon as it had begun. Corpses dotted the place they were standing in, as Aedrus lowered his bolt pistol. "That was… expected, yet surprisingly easy."

Daerid glanced at his Power Claws, utterly covered with blood. "I'll need to clean these later. Xerxes, I hope you can make a good apology to the machine spirit about the mess I've made of its body."

Erstan had separated from the group as he was observing the corpses. "Brother-Captain, you may want to see this."

"What is it, Erstan?" Aedrus inquired as he stepped over to join him, Daerid following.

"Xenos and humans, fighting alongside each other, by the look of it," Erstan affirmed, as he turned over the body of a xenos with his foot. It had oddly blue skin, with some sort of appendage sprouting from each side of its head.

"Do you think the xenos have corrupted them, somehow?" Aedrus asked. It wouldn't have been the first time xenos had taken advantage of humanity.

"Well, I'm sure if you leave me to the corpse, I can have a wonderful chat with it about its prior life, though I somehow don't think that will work."

Daerid frowned at the discovery, as the three of them returned to the rest of the Astartes. This world was getting stranger by the minute.


	4. Chapter 4

**My apologies for the delay, battle-brothers! The foul Nurgle struck me down with illnesses for two days, though I managed to endure with the help of the Iron Knights, and remain a servant of the Emperor.**

**Jouaint - We shall have to wait and see!  
**

**bazagal - Myus, it should be very entertaining.  
**

**Guest - Alright, you win on that account, however I doubt lasguns will be used for awhile, if at all, in the story.**

* * *

Sergeant Blyes noticed a distinct change as the artillery stopped shelling his position. He glanced at his fellow soldiers about him, wearing the same confused expression as he was. The Republic hadn't bombed Drelliad that much was certain. He hadn't received any word that reinforcements were arriving, other than the downed transport carrying two members of Havoc Squad. So, what had caused the sudden silence? Blyes motioned for his men to fan out and search the village. The squad of Republic soldiers made their way towards the southwest entrance.

Almost immediately, they found cut down bodies of the separatists. They had been torn to utter shreds by blaster fire, only…

"What kind of blaster does _that_?" One of the soldiers asked, gesturing to the corpses. "They look like they've been shredded by shrapnel."

"Sergeant," Another one of his men beckoned him over and Blyes hurried over to him. "This one's been shredded by some sort of sharp weaponry. Looks like a manka cat, or something of the like." The Twi'lek's blood was a mess where his body lay, clear indication of the deadly work of the claws.

"Whatever they are, they aren't friendly to the Seps." Blyes deduced. _But are they friendly to us?_ He wondered.

"Proceed with caution, men. We don't know what we're up against." His squad nodded in agreement, weapons at ready, as they proceeded cautiously and slowly. One glanced around the corner, then immediately ducked back behind it, mouthing a curse. Blyes moved to his position, as he whispered in a low voice, "What is it?"

"S-See for yourself, s-sir," The recruit managed to gasp, pure fear in his eyes. Blyes glanced past the corner, expecting to see more blood and gore than previously present.

He did not expect the seven foot thing in armour.

Blyes swore under his breath, as he glanced back at the recruit. Did the Separatists invent some new droid, gone rogue? It would explain the masses of bodies, and the gruesome way they were killed. Blyes shuddered, at the image of going to toe to toe with the being. Whatever it was, it'd have to be dealt with one way or another.

* * *

Despite the fact that they had tried to quickly hide themselves, Ferias had seen them. Brother-Captain Aedrus had kept Ferias, Erstan, and Ceres at the sight of the massacre, in case more hostiles had decided to show themselves. The rest of the Astartes had returned to the Thunderhawk, sans Xerxes who was fascinated with the technology of these strange inhabitants. Erstan, too, was interested in the inhabitants, though the interest was more in the inhabitants themselves. He had given particular study to several xenos species, utmost focus on each specimen. Ferias had noted Ceres was on edge. Being a newer recruit in the Iron Knights, he could understand his panic at suddenly being thrust into the Warp, cut off from the rest of the Chapter, who were on other systems or cleaning up the mess Aedrus had left on the Daemon World.

Ferias raised his hand to the Vox bead in his helmet as he spoke into it. "Inhabitants of unknown intent in the vicinity. Any action we should take, Brother-Captain?"

Ceres raised his bolter upon hearing that, pointing it in the general direction Ferias had noted. Ferias motioned for Ceres to lower his weapon. "We do not know if they are hostile yet, brother. Keep your weapon at the ready, though."

Ceres nodded, as Ferias reached out with his psychic abilities to subtly probe the minds of the potential hostiles. After a few moments, he ceased. "They're not hostile, at least, so long as we don't startle them. They are part of an organization known as the 'Galactic Republic', and we appear to be on the planet known as Ord Mantell. Did you get all of that, Brother-Captain?" Ferias relayed.

"Loud and clear, Ferias. Very well, see if you can negotiate with them. It seems that we are, for a certainty, not in the Imperium anymore."

"It would appear so, Brother-Captain. Ferias, out." Ferias switched the Vox off, as he nodded to Ceres. "Stay here and guard Erstan and Xerxes."

"Of course, Brother-Librarian," Ceres replied as he hefted his bolter. Ferias strode forth towards the squad of soldiers.

* * *

"He's coming towards us, sir," One of the recruits whispered, with utter terror in his voice.

"He?" Well, he wasn't a droid. That much was known.

"Yes, sir. Potential hostile identified as male, sir."

"Right, don't fire until I give the coma-…" Blyes trailed off as he suddenly noticed some sort of presence in his mind.

_What the-?_ He thought, confused at this sudden occupation of his mind. Were they dealing with a Jedi or Sith?

**_I do not know what a Jedi or Sith are, but I am not one of them. Please, do not be frightened. The Warp allows me to converse with people in thought._**

_I don't even know what that is, or what you are either. Did you do all of this to the Seps?_

**_Myself and my battle-brothers. Mostly the work of Brother Daerid and Brother Talius. The Warp is the pandemonium that houses Chaos. It is also our primary source of transport and the Astronomican guides us through it, by the will of the God-Emperor. As for my name, I am Brother Ferias, of the Iron Knights Chapter, Seventh Company. Are you saying you have never heard of the Warp or an Astartes?_**

_You're really making no sense. I don't know what all this Chaos is, or an Astronomican, or a God-Emperor._

A violent tremor passed through Blyes' head, possibly an emotion. **_I… see. You do not know of Him on Holy Terra? Though you do not know of Chaos either, so you are not a heretic. Perhaps you could guide us to wherever it is you receive commands? We require answers, and I have received limited solutions from your mind._**

_How do I know you're not with the enemy? Why should I do any of this, anyway?_

**_You do not know an Astartes. We are the sons of the Emperor, and it is likely we could break your men, as we did with these 'separatist' heretics. I would recommend a change of attitude, Sergeant. Myself and my brothers mean you no harm, so long as you do not provide it to us first._**

_Fine, fine, I can understand that. But we both are going to get some answers when we get to Fort Garnik, believe me, 'Brother Ferias'._

**_Oh, I am counting on it, Sergeant. In fact, I look forward to it. I will inform my Brother-Captain of your decision._**

And like that, the link was severed, as Ferias murmured something into his helmet, some sort of comlink. Blyes rubbed his forehead, still disturbed by the events that went on in his mind.

"What in the seven Corellian hells?"

Ferias whipped about, as Blyes glanced behind him to find a woman with goldenrod hair colour, and in a brown jacket, with an undershirt. Beside her was a soldier with tan skin and black hair, assault rifle aimed at Ferias. Blyes recognized him as the new recruit in Havoc Squad. So, at least one of them had survived. "Sergeant, lower your weapon. Ma'am, I don't believe we've made an acquaintance."

The sergeant looked surprised at this, but did as he was ordered by Blyes. The woman, however, still had some steely resolve. Blyes noted the blaster pistol holstered to her belt. "My ship just got jacked, there's a guy seven feet tall _right_ next to you, and we're supposed to talk pleasantries?" She snorted at this before continuing. "Name's Jelara. I docked at the spaceport northwest of here, to deliver supplies to your boys at Garnik. Then this sergeant tags along with me, saying he has orders to go to the village, and blow something up. Well, turns out, I had to blow something to pieces as well. Only we see explosions over here, and next thing I know, that snake Skavak has my ship." She frowned as she folded her arms across her chest. "Somehow, I don't think pleasantries are going to work, Sarge."

Blyes was taken aback by this, though Ferias appeared to be even more so. Muttering something under his breath, he turned about and left.

* * *

Ferias had no words for the confusion he was experiencing. These inhabitants had no idea who the Emperor even was, and even that was outright heresy. When Aedrus had been informed of all that transpired, he frowned. "We'll just have to work with them, Brother Ferias. For now, we must respect their ignorance, and enlighten them later. We have no idea what their technological abilities are, and the _Righteous Flame_ is hovering right by several ships with advanced weaponry. I do not want to provoke these people."

"As you say, Brother-Captain." Ferias turned about and strode out of the Thunderhawk. Like it or not, they were going to Fort Garnik. _And maybe I can get some answers_.

* * *

**Woo! The Smuggler and Trooper characters are introduced to the story (I hope you guys don't mind my putting the eight main classes from SW:TOR into the story, do you?). That's all for today. The Emperor protects, and may the Force be with you! **


	5. Chapter 5

**I am so sorry for the delay! I had tons of things I had to do and I'm really sorry I left this to fester. This isn't as long as other chapters, but I hope it will suffice. Anyways, time to respond to reviews.**

**Jouaint - Good question. It depends on if we're talking pre-Ward heresy or not.**

**bazagal - MYUS. I plan on doing some things with the Sith Empire.**

**Ryan - Thanks!**

**sabotuer - I am glad this pleases you. Praise the Emperor for giving me the gift of writing.**

**PSG1JOHN - Excellent. Another interested being! Exactly as plan-... I mean, glad you like the story! I wasn't being Tzeentch at all. Nope.**

**edboy4926 - Thanks to you as well!**

**yuzah - Your hopes have been fulfilled.**

**Eipok - Nurgle is a patron of the Traitor Legions! His followers will be purged without mercy, except in death. To the first question, yes, they would. But, I've studied the Republic transport, and it looks so-..boxy. It's a metal box, on legs. Carron would be most displeased. As to the second question, I'm aware of that as well, however these are unknown xenos, nor did they look like the humans were passively-aggressively enslaved, as the Tau like to do.**

* * *

Hours after the argument began, Erasmus still had a headache.

One of these 'Galactic Republic' troops had come forward, informing the Iron Knights of snipers that dotted the path to Fort Garnik. Upon hearing that, several of his battle-brothers and himself opted to use the Thunderhawk to get to Fort Garnik. The Republic soldiers, however, disagreed, as an unknown vehicle flying towards the fort may provoke anti-aircraft fire. Thus, they were hit with a quandary as his battle-brothers were determined that the Thunderhawk would survive the onslaught. Naturally, the Republic did not concur, and they also wanted the snipers eliminated. The argument had finally ended when Erasmus had suggested to use the Thunderhawk to assault the snipers.

Now, here he was piloting the Thunderhawk on a merry chase, rooting out snipers. Due to his eccentric piloting, Aedrus had ordered for nobody else to be aboard the vessel during its flight, much to Erasmus' chagrin.

Erasmus shook his head, lapsing out of his memories as he focused on the mission. Glancing outside of the viewport, he noted another group of snipers and swooped down to engage them. The Thunderhawk's heavy bolters blazed to life, shredding the squad in seconds.

Aedrus' voice crackled through the Vox. "Excellent work, Brother Erasmus. That should be the last of them. Return to the landing site."

"Copy that, Brother-Captain. Returning to base," Erasmus replied, going to steer the Thunderhawk back to Drelliad. He idly eased the Thunderhawk back to the landing zone, as he deployed the landing gear. With a soft thump, the Thunderhawk landed, and Erasmus switched on the ramp. Clambering out of his seat in the cockpit, he clanked over towards the ramp, his mind lost in thought once again. Being a pilot came naturally to him, but staying focused wasn't one of his strongpoints.

He found Aedrus, his battle-brothers, and the Republic soldiers waiting for him. Aedrus inclined his head towards Erasmus as he began to speak. "Erasmus, we've decided to proceed to Fort Garnik on foot. The Republic soldiers still feel that the Thunderhawk might agitate the garrison."

"Understood, Brother-Captain." Erasmus frowned at this. What was going to occur to the Thunderhawk?

"The Thunderhawk will remain safe. The good Sergeant Blyes has informed us of the Republic sweeping in to claim Drelliad soon. The Thunderhawk will be in good hands," Ferias explained. Obviously, he had been browsing his mind.

"Well, there's no time like the present. Let's get going, then," Blyes stated as he turned, beginning the long trek towards Fort Garnik.

Erasmus glanced back towards the Thunderhawk, nodding in farewell to it, as he went to go bring up the rear. With him were Daerid and Erstan, and he also noticed Jelara fall back to the rear, likely intending conversation.

"So, you're a pilot, huh?" She asked once she began to match Erasmus' pace, hard to do with an Astartes.

"I am one of the Seventh Company's pilots, yes. I assume you noticed the Thunderhawk?" Erasmus inquired.

"Kind of hard to miss."

"Yes, I suppose it would be," Erasmus agreed.

"I can understand being separated from your ship. Once you've used it so many times, it's not easy parting from it, particularly when you hardly know the people you're entrusting it to." Jelara explained.

"You knew of my apprehension?" Erasmus was boggled as to how many people could study his thoughts.

Jelara chuckled at that. "I'm no Jedi, but it's easy to know a dedicated pilot from sight. I don't use any sort of telepathy, but I do use my mind."

"I see. I suppose being in company with a psyker makes one paranoid that everyone is reading his mind." Erasmus sheepishly grinned behind his helmet. "I understand that your ship was stolen?"

Jelara's mood darkened at the mention, though she still remained talkative. "Yeah. Skavak, that little rat, sold us out to the Separatists, and took my ship in the process. So, as of now, I'm stranded here."

"I understand you predicament."

"Do you? How so?" Jelara quirked an eyebrow at this.

"I recall one time, my brothers and I were shot down during a conflict in the 13th Black Crusade. It was difficult to survive, constantly being assailed from all sides by Chaos. It is a truly terrible thing." Erasmus shuddered as he recalled the 13th Black Crusade. Amazingly, the Imperium had beaten back the inexorable advance of Chaos. Yet still, the war had never truly ended. Certainly not for himself.

Jelara glanced at him with some sort of newfound respect, before continuing the conversation. "Anyway, I was hoping to get the chance of piloting your ship at some point. Just to see what you 'Space Marines' do with your ships."

"I will have to consult with the Brother-Captain and Xerxes, but you should be able to." Erasmus was unsure as to what to feel about that. Was he feeling apprehension or excitement?

"So, this Republic of yours, it spans the known galaxy?" Erstan inquired, breaking into the conversation.

"As far as I'm aware. There's the Core Worlds, the Inner Rim, the Mid Rim, and the Outer Rim. There's also the Unknown Regions, but anybody who've explored there haven't returned," Jelara explained.

"Unknown Regions? Strange, we have uncharted space of our own. We believe that is where the Tyranids come from," Erstan stated, curiosity brimming in his voice.

"Tyranids?" Jelara asked.

Daerid snorted. "Tyranids. Probably the worst xenos you'll ever meet. For one thing, they're big. Very big."

"An excellent explanation of the Tyranids, Brother Daerid." Erstan replied, obvious sarcasm dripping through the helmet. He turned back to Jelara as he continued. "Perhaps I shall explain when we arrive at Fort Garnik. In any case, you do not want to brush with them."

"I'll keep that in mind, thanks for the information," Jelara responded.

They rounded a corner and the massive fortress loomed in front of them for the first time in close range. Bristling with anti-aircraft turrets, it was a formidable stronghold, and Erasmus was silently thankful that they did not bring the Thunderhawk. Republic soldiers prowled the entrance, as some of them began to notice the assembly. A couple of them broke off from their patrols, as they made their way down to address them.

"Well," Jelara stated as she glanced up at the military stronghold. "Welcome to Fort Garnik."


End file.
